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VA Seeks Help With Mobile Security

As it seeks information from vendors about implementing a more robust mobile device management system to help ensure security, the Department of Veterans Affairs has reported its first case of a stolen iPad.

Following a pilot of Apple iPhones and iPads, the VA began rolling out the devices Oct. 1, with about 500 in operation as of this week.

Roger Baker, the VA’s CIO, revealed at his monthly press conference call Oct. 26 that an iPad was stolen from a Washington office last month before it was deployed. There was no data on the device.

The VA already has a pilot version of a mobile device management system that it can use to, for example, remotely wipe data from a device that’s stolen and monitor whether only approved applications are running on a particular device. Now, it’s requesting information from vendors this week on deploying a more robust, enterprisewide mobile device management system, based on the cloud computing model, which could monitor up to 100,000 devices running multiple operating systems.